Chretien-Baptiste Marie de Grimaldi d'Orange
Chrétien-Baptiste Marie IV de Grimaldi d'Orange de Monaco '''(13th November 1743 - Present) is a Grandelumierian nobleman and a member of the House Grimaldi d'Orange. He was the son of Louis-Marie Matthieu and took the title at his death. He is a maternal grandson of Louis XI, his mother being the youngest of the Emperor's children. Reign of Louis XI '''Early life - Prince d'Orange Birth Chretien-Baptiste was born at the small palace of the Princes of Monaco, in Monaco city. His father was the first Prince of Monaco from Grimaldi d'Orange, after his father, the Prince of Monaco married the Sovereign Princess of Orange, combining the two. At the time of his birth, Monaco remained a family of Princes Etranger at the Grandelumierian court, holding their land as an autonomous Principality. His mother was Marie Sophie, daughter of Louis XI of Grandelumiere.The chateau was a small building, rebuilt after a fire which destroyed the previous building, but it was an impressive building nonetheless. The birth itself was an easy one for the mother, who had little difficulty beyond that which can be expected. He would be named Prince d'Orange on his birth, the title granted to the heir since the union of Orange and Monaco. He was immediately put into the care of his governess, the Comtesse de Torigni, and the wetnurses employed by the family. His parents would remain for a short while longer, before his father left back for the court of Grandelumiere in Saint-Etienne, while his mother remained at the Chateau-des-Princes-de-Monaco. He would be joined by a further two brothers and a sister in time, both brothers died in childhood. Baptism By the time of his seventh birthday, his father arranged for his Baptism to take place. A large ceremony was held at the Cathedrale-Notre-Dame-Immaculee de Monaco for the event of the Baptism of the future Prince. The small court of the Princes would join, alongside notable members of society. His godfather would be his paternal uncle, the Marquis de Baux, while his godmother was the paternal grandmother, the Dowager Princess of Monaco, Marie-Hippolyte. The ceremony was conducted by the Bishop of Nice, Charles-Francois Cantoni. It was during this time that his name would be selected by both parents, who named him Chretien-Baptiste Marie. This name was picked to symbolise Christian values, the Holy Baptism, and the Blessed Virgin Mary. These were the three values the parents would hope to instil in the boy, both being strongly religious themselves, particularly his mother. He would come to dislike theology in his early years, and attitude that would change over time as he gradually changed. Education Shortly after his Baptism, he was to be moved from the care of women in the form of his Governesses and was taken to be educated by the Auxiliary Bishop of Nice, Jean-Benoit de Fontenay. He did not exactly perform well in any academic subjects and disliked sciences, theology and language. He would later relate his dislike for academia as the fault of his tutor, the Auxiliary Bishop, as he was a fairly imposing man who dominated the young boy's life in a commanding manner, which he would resent. He only performed well in his studies of Latin in terms of academia, taking on this topic with some vigour. He did take to musical composition and hunting with more enthusiasm, producing several amateur compositions for both harpsichord and violin. His education and childhood were otherwise unremarkable, beyond an unhealthy closeness with a boy his age at the age of 12, as remarked by the family Governess. The boy in question was the page employed by his father and who helped see to the heir's chambers in the morning. The pair would become fairly close over the years of his employment, and Chretien was known to proposition him on several occasions as the pair grew. His mother and father frequented the court of Saint-Etienne while he remained in the care of his tutors with his cousins and siblings. He himself would rarely leave the court in Monaco and never visited Saint-Etienne before hand. His father would be busy organising potential weddings for his son, which would be unsuccessful until 1750. Fontaine Honore, Duc de Parme and Prince Legitimised, had recently had a daughter three years prior. They were arranged to be wed once she reached majority. She would, as a result, remain in Parma or in the Saint-Etienne court while waiting until the time of her marriage, the pair would only know one another through portraiture. While awaiting her majority, Chretien would spend his time in the company of various males, though, these relationships were kept hushed and quiet and rarely heard of outside his close friends who knew of his leanings. Several of these would occur with the close friends of the boy, and the occasional guard who he might proposition. This was not uncommon, due to his less than shy nature, and as the heir of, at the time, a sovereign nation, he was unlikely to face any consequence. Marriage His bride would come of age in February 1763, and would remain in the court of Saint-Etienne for a few months while waiting to make her way to Monaco. This was due to the fact her education in the Abbey of Saint-Denis, Paris. This wait would not be of much concern to Chretien, who continued to occupy himself with his flirtations. However, his parents would return to the Monaco court by August, and in the following month of September, his fiancee would arrive. The wedding between the two would eventually occur in October 1763 in the Cathedrale-Notre-Dame-Immaculee de Monaco. They would consummate the marriage on the first night much to Chretien's disgust at the act. Marie-Olympe would be equally disappointed, owing to his lack of interest, which was fairly evident, so much so that immediately following Chretien would leave the room without so much as a word. This less-than-amourous encounter resulted in Benedict-Baptiste, their first child and heir. The following year, Marie-Olympe would discover the leanings of Chretien through her sister in law as well as gossip throughout the Monaco court, as this was an open secret. Rather than becoming infuriated, she was sympathetic to his disposition as her own father had been known to act in such a manner. The pair would reach a form of agreement, Marie-Olympe accepted the infidelities of her husband, as he would accept hers. In fact, they grew closer, as a result, the pair often introduced partners who they thought might suit the other. In early 1766, Marie Olympe would give birth to Marie Germaine. Officially known as the daughter of Chretien-Baptiste, the pair knew she was rather the daughter of the Comte de Breteuil, with whom she was now fairly close. The child was raised nevertheless in the same manner as their son had been. She would carry for him another son, Georges-Louis Seraphin in 1768, again, of another birth, this time, to a guard of the Monaco Palace. By 1766, his father would die, leaving him as Sovereign Prince of Monaco. He would remain in Monaco for the duration of the reign. With this new position, he would be known for his extravagant living, and openly admitting his sexuality in the presence of his court. Added to this, he would partake in dressing himself in dresses and accompanied by his male companions. While in Monaco, they would be known for excessive parties and his less than conventional life. Curiously, he would come to gain two real passions beyond his parties, that of collecting watches and clocks, as well as collecting Bibles, much opposed to his otherwise less-than-holy lifestyle. It was rumoured he was holding orgies in the Monaco Palace, though he openly dismissed the idea. It was true to say he was not overly picky about his habits, and regularly propositioned staff and male courtiers, he did not organise such events himself. Indeed even his wife would find the idea laughable at best but dismissed it as harmless gossip in light of the more serious issues. In 1767, Louis XI his maternal grandfather would die, leaving the Empire of Grandelumiere to his grandson, and the first cousin of Chretien. Louis Raphael. Reign of Louis XII The beginning of the reign of Louis XII would see little change for him, as he had little interest in visiting Saint-Etienne himself. He enjoyed his simple life in the south, with the unusual lifestyle kept by his wife and he. However, it would not be long until the revolution would break out, and he would leave for the papal state of Avignon for safety and meet his mother who was fleeing south. He would travel with several male companions, a Chevalier d'Abigneon and the Seigneur de La Mayne. In Avignon, he would meet his mother, Marie Sophie, along with Cardinal Louis-Joseph de Grandelumiere, Louis Jacques de Grandelumiere, his wife Marie Louise, their children and the governess of their children. After meeting in Avignon, the party would then leave south for Spain and the court of Charles III. Reign of Charles III It was in Spain he would actually come slightly closer to his mother. Marie Sophie had, until then, rarely seen her son, spending most of her time in Grandelumiere. She had always regarded him with the same distance her father had treated her. However, being stuck in the rigid, formal Spanish court, the pair would share in their nationality and customs, they would spend their time together, discussing their future and the issues which faced them. The revolution would lay claim to the territory of Monaco, stripping it of sovereign status, and absorbing it into the Empire. To further his position, he would be pained to hear of the death of his mother, Marie Sophie, Dowager Princess of Monaco. She would have a service in Madrid, where her body was kept until she may be reburied in Monaco. The revolution was ended with the death of First Consul Benedicte, and Charles VIII, second son of Louis XII and brother of Louis XIII, died. Louis XIV would ascend, brother of Louis XII, and his first cousin. Reign of Louis XIV Chretien would return to the residence of Monaco, now as a Prince of Monaco, but not sovereign. The Emperor was unwilling to cede any territory gained during the revolution, which removed his prestige and ended Monaco as an independent state. He would immediately see to his mother's full funeral, and observe a month of mourning for her at home. After this, he continued the ostentatious lifestyle he had once had, becoming a well-known host of parties and festivities. His chateau, the Chateau-des-Princes-de-Monaco, was the highlight of the southern regions, inviting many nobles to make visits to his frequent parties. After some time, he would make preparations to travel for the Saint-Etienne court. Issue With his wife, Marie-Olympe, he would officially have three children; * Benedict-Baptiste, Prince d'Orange (3rd August 1764 - Present) * Marie Germaine, Princesse (14th March 1766 - Present) * Georges-Louis Seraphin, Baron de Sabran (9th January 1768 - 3rd February 1768) Styles, Titles and Honours Styles and Titles * 13th November 1743 - 25th June 1766 His Serene Highness, Prince d'Orange * 25th June 1766 - 13th September 1770 His Serene Highness, Sovereign Prince of Monaco * 13th September 1770 - Present His Serene Highness, Prince of Monaco Category:Grandelumierian Nobility Category:1700s births Category:Foreign nobility Category:People of foreign birth Category:House Grimaldi d'Orange Category:Princes of Monaco